Around 1121, Muḥammad ibn Tūmart was recognized by his followers as the Mahdi and soon established the Almohad movement’s base at Tinmel in the Atlas Mountains. This ideological and organizational consolidation underpinned later Almohad interventions in al-Andalus.
Ibn Tumart died in 1130, after which ʿAbd al-Muʾmin assumed leadership. Under Abd al-Mu'min, the movement transitioned from a reformist coalition into an expanding state that would soon project power into Iberia.
In 1147, Abd al-Mu'min’s forces captured Marrakesh, the Almoravid capital, decisively ending Almoravid rule in the western Maghreb and enabling sustained Almohad campaigns and governance across North Africa and al-Andalus.
From July to October 1147, Alfonso VII of León-Castile and allies (including Genoa) captured Almería, then held by the Almoravids. The episode highlights the military volatility in Iberia at the moment the Almohads were replacing the Almoravids as the main Muslim power.
Seville fell to Almohad control in 1148 after an Almoravid siege and local support for the Almohads. Securing Seville strengthened Almohad administrative and military reach in al-Andalus, making it a key base for later campaigns against Christian kingdoms.
In 1157, the Almohads besieged and recaptured Almería, expelling the Leonese and Genoese garrison and defeating a Castilian relief effort. Control of this port mattered for Mediterranean supply lines and for coastal defense of southeastern al-Andalus.
On 15 October 1165, an Almohad army defeated the forces of Ibn Mardanīsh (ruler of Murcia and Valencia) near Alhama de Murcia. The battle weakened a major anti-Almohad strongman and advanced Almohad consolidation in eastern and southeastern al-Andalus.
From April to 21 May 1169, Portuguese forces besieging Badajoz were defeated by an alliance of the Almohad garrison and the Kingdom of León. The outcome underscored Almohad capacity to influence frontier warfare in western Iberia.
By 1172, Almohad authority extended across all of Muslim Iberia (al-Andalus), marking the apex of Almohad political unification in the peninsula before the later turning point of 1212.
In June–July 1184, the Almohads besieged Santarém in Portugal but failed to take the city. Caliph Abu Yaqub Yusuf was wounded and died on 29 July 1184, a significant leadership loss during ongoing pressure on the western frontier.
On 18 July 1195, the Almohads under Yaʿqūb al-Manṣūr defeated Alfonso VIII of Castile at Alarcos. The victory stalled Castilian advances for years and demonstrated the Almohads’ ability to mount major expeditions from North Africa into Iberia.
On 16 July 1212, a coalition led by Castile, Aragon, and Navarre defeated Caliph Muḥammad al-Nāṣir at Las Navas de Tolosa. The battle is widely treated as a major turning point that accelerated Christian gains and Almohad decline in Iberia.
In late 1225, a Portuguese force raided Seville’s outskirts, defeating Almohad forces and looting the area. The raid illustrates how, amid internal strain, the Almohads faced increasingly bold Christian operations deep in Andalusi territory.
On 12 September 1229, during the Aragonese conquest of Majorca, James I’s forces defeated Almohad defenders at the Battle of Portopí. The campaign marked the erosion of Almohad-aligned rule in the Balearics in the wake of Almohad weakening after 1212.
In September 1269, Marrakesh fell to the Marinids, and the last Almohad caliph, Idris al-Wathiq, was killed. This ended Almohad rule in the Maghreb and conclusively closed the era of Almohad-led military intervention in Iberian affairs.
Almohad rule and military campaigns in Iberia (1121–1269)
